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It was all a blur.
Aiden sat on the floor beside Matty, close enough their shoulders could touch. He didn't know what to say to his best friend. All he could do was be there.
Matty stared into space.
Dad had tried to get them to go into Aiden's room, but neither of them wanted to move. Neither of them could.
His dad had been calm after it happened. Right up until he'd stepped away from Sam. Then he'd rounded on the police chief, the dude from the party the other night, and started yelling at him.
The dude's hands went up, and he stepped back. Aiden wasn't sure what the guy said. Whatever it was, it didn't help. Dad still looked like he wanted to kill somebody.
Somebody else. He wouldn't think about that right now.
Then Sam had nudged him, and he turned and hugged her again.
Now he was telling the chief what happened. Brady. That was his name.
A couple of guys came inside—paramedics. One stopped and spoke with Dad, who pointed to Sam, then to Aiden and Matty.
One paramedic laid a blanket across Sam's shoulders. He tried to get her to sit, but she shrugged him off.
The others came over and threw blankets over Aiden and Matty. Nuts to need thick blankets. It was August. But despite the heat, Aiden shivered. He had to work to keep his teeth from chattering.
The dudes started asking questions. Were they hurt? How did they feel?
Stupid questions with no answers. They responded as best they could.
Cops were everywhere. Some in uniform, some not. Some snapping pictures. Some making notes. Some standing around. All muttering in a language Aiden couldn't seem to make out.
Lionel and Matty's father were on the far side of the room, hidden beyond the sofa and the many people. And there were a lot of cops standing between Aiden and Matty and the bald guy, too, so they could hardly see that body, either.
Then white fabric was snapped. It fluttered slowly over Baldie. Two more snaps, two more sheets, and all three of the bodies were covered.
Other guys with stretchers took the bodies away.
Dad left the cluster of cops, came over, and sat on the floor in front of them. "How you guys doing?"
Aiden shrugged.
Matty looked like he wanted to say something. Nothing came out.
"Yeah." Dad rested his big hand on Matty's shoulder. "It'll take some time to process." He looked at Aiden. "How are you, son?"
"I don't know." He did know, though, and he felt terrible about it. Because while he knew it really sucked that Matty's father had died, he was happy to be alive. His father and Sam and Matty were alive, and it was all over. They were safe. He kept telling himself that, trying to get the truth to sink in.
Poor Matty, though. Would he ever get over it? Matty'd been wanting a relationship with his father for so long, and now it could never happen.
Dad rubbed Matty's shoulder. "I talked to your mother. She's on her way."
Matty looked up at that. "Mom knows?"
"She knows you're here and that you need her."
Matty's eyes filled with tears, and Dad scooted closer and pulled him into a hug. Matty cried, like really cried, on Dad's shoulder. Aiden thought maybe he should look away or something, but he didn't. He couldn't seem to make himself. And his own vision blurred, and he ended up wrapping his arm around his best friend and his dad and crying with them. The blanket the paramedics gave him fell away. He didn't need it now. He was warm enough.
They stayed like that for a long time. When Aiden finally looked up, he saw Sam watching from the other side of the room. He waved her over. She came, but she didn't say anything or ask how he was. She just took his hand in hers and sat beside him.
He liked having Sam there. She was good for his dad. And she was good for him, too. She was kind and funny and sweet. And she'd risked her life to save his.
The memory came back, Lionel threatening to kill Aiden, Sam putting herself in danger for him.
He turned, dropped her hand, wrapped her in his arms, and held on tight. She held him right back. He needed to say thank you. He couldn't seem to make his mouth work. Maybe she knew already. Maybe some things didn't have to be said out loud.
He imagined what they must look like, this cluster of people, crying and hugging on the floor. Ridiculous. But what else could they do? They were the only people alive who knew what had happened that night. They were the only ones who'd ever understand.
Eventually, somebody came over and needed Dad, and he stood. "Son, why don't you go pack your things? And mine, too, if you don't mind. We'll leave soon."
"Where are we going?"
Dad shrugged. "Not sure yet."
Brady came over. "We have a spare room you can sleep in. The boys can take the couches downstairs."
"No." Sam stood and spoke to Dad. "I'd like it if you'd stay with me. I have a spare room and a sofa bed in my office."
"You sure you don't mind? Teenage boys aren't the tidiest people in the world. And—"
"I want you there. All of you. And..." She shrugged, looked at Aiden, and smiled before she turned back to Dad. "I think I'll sleep better if I'm not alone."
Dad turned to Brady. "We'll go to Sam's. Thanks for the offer, though."
Brady turned to Sam. "Do you need anything, then? Blankets? Pillows?"
She focused on Aiden. "Grab the pillows off the beds back there. And maybe an extra blanket or two."
"You don't think the owners will mind?"
She smiled. "I'm the owner."
"Oh, yeah." He'd forgotten. And probably she wished she weren't, now that three men had died in this place. He wondered what she'd do with the cabin. Would she fix it up like she'd planned, or would she sell it? He didn't know. He'd find out eventually, though. Because if his guess was right, Sam was going to be in their lives for a long time.
Aiden stood and offered a hand to Matty, who stared at it.
"I could use your help."
Matty shrugged.
Aiden kept his hand there. He figured letting Matty sit here by himself wasn't going to help anything. "Let's go."
Finally, Matty grabbed his hand and stood. Away from the living room, the world seemed suddenly normal again. Until they got to Aiden's room.
Of course, it had been searched, too. The mattress was off the bed, the blankets piled on the floor. His stuff was everywhere. He swore and stepped inside. "Guess we'd better get to work."
Aiden hoisted the mattress back onto the box spring, turned to grab the blankets to get them out of the way, and saw Matty standing silently in the doorway. "You could help."
"I just...I wanted to say, like..."
Aiden stood straight. "What?" And then he knew what. "Listen, what I said earlier, about this being your fault, or your dad's fault—"
"It was, though. I never should have stowed that stuff in your car."
"There's no way you could have known. I wasn't really mad at you, or at your dad. I was ticked off, and craving. And anyway, it seems to me the only guy we should be mad at is that Lionel dude, and maybe his two goon friends. This wasn't your fault."
Matty's eyes filled with tears, and Aiden looked away. "So don't just stand there, dude. Help me find all my crap."
"Yeah. Okay."
From the corner of his eye, Aiden watched Matty start picking stuff up. They were friends. Maybe things would never be the same, but they could still be friends.